geopolitics

Meanings

1. 1noununcountable

   The study of how a country's location, resources, and physical surroundings shape its power and its relations with other countries.

   Grammar: Uncountable; takes a singular verb: Geopolitics is complex.

   Patterns

   • the geopolitics of something

   She teaches geopolitics at a university in London.

   The course covers the geopolitics of energy in Central Asia.

   Geopolitics explains why some small states matter far more than their size suggests.

2. 2noununcountable

   The way that geography and the struggle for power together influence what countries actually do in the world.

   Grammar: Also uncountable; often used in news analysis, sometimes with 'the': the geopolitics of the region.

   Patterns

   • the geopolitics of something
   • regional geopolitics

   The war changed the geopolitics of the whole region.

   Analysts say geopolitics, not trade rules, now drives the two countries' decisions.

   Climate change is adding a new dimension to global geopolitics.

Common combinations

global geopolitics

Global geopolitics has shifted since the new alliance was formed.

the geopolitics of oil

The geopolitics of oil has shaped Middle Eastern history for a century.

regional geopolitics

Regional geopolitics makes any peace deal extremely fragile.

study geopolitics

He went to Beijing to study geopolitics and international law.

Synonyms and how they differ

international relations

A broader term for how states interact; geopolitics focuses specifically on geography, territory, and resources.

Word family

geopolitical adjective

Relating to geopolitics: a geopolitical crisis.

geopolitician noun

A person who studies or comments on geopolitics.

Commonly confused: geopolitics or political geography?

Practice

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